If Phillip Officer were a radio announcer with a program near bedtime, his smooth mellow voice would invite a lovely sleep. But officer is not a radio host. This summer, he was a part-time cabana host at the Las Vegas Vdara swimming pool. Next week, he will be appearing as a performer at Birdland Jazz Club in New York City with a program paying tribute to English-born cabaret singer Mabel Mercer.

Officer is a former New Yorker and Broadway veteran, and after the first of next year will be appearing in a Las Vegas Majestic Theatre production of “Cabaret.” After that, he will be traveling to Puerto Vallarta where he will perform his Mabel Mercer show again. While other men his age are sitting in rocking chairs, Officer is on the move.

Raised in the “Show Me” state of Missouri, Officer and his two brothers were encouraged to explore their musical talents. Their father was a plumber by trade, but shared his passion as a vocalist and devoted music lover. Their mother co-owned a florist shop. Officer remembers delivering floral bouquets after school and on weekends during holiday rushes.

In high school, Officer participated in band and choral groups, and discovered his particular interest in the drama club. After high school, Officer attended the University of Missouri in Kansas City where he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and studied acting with some voice and dance. “Once I went to college, I never moved home again,” he said. “In the summers I worked in Kansas City and took theater jobs. A group of us started the Coterie Theatre Company producing shows for children and families. The Coterie Theatre is still going strong today in Kansas City.”

After college, Officer moved to New York. He was rather quickly hired as an actor/singer/dancer for a touring company that played theaters in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania doing musicals. After five months of musicals such as Pippin and Annie, and famous playhouses such as Falmouth Playhouse and Bucks County Playhouse, Officer wanted more stability and moved back to New York.

Work in theater was not easy. “I’m not an everyman type,” Officer explained. “Agents didn’t know what to do with me, so I put together a solo show. My cabaret act was a showcase and I started getting work from people who saw me.”

Officer’s life also required some stability, so he used his typing skills to work at local law firms typing legal documents.

Asked to audition for a number of new shows, Officer was one of the original cast members of a show called “Side Show”. He went through weeks of workshops and readings and eventually a year later the show went to Broadway with Officer playing “the Geek”. The show received rave reviews, but its content, showcasing a number of unusual sideshow characters, did not inspire ticket holders. The show closed in three months. Officer in Las Vegas very successfully sang one of the show’s songs with partner Ruby Lewis: ”Who Will Love Me As I am”.

After 15 years in New York, a couple appearances at Carnegie Hall, and a number of successes booking the events himself, in 2008 Officer decided to move to Las Vegas. His parents had both died as well as a brother, and Officer said he needed a new start. He had never visited Las Vegas, but made the move.


Officer wasn’t going to pursue a singing career in Las Vegas at first; financial stability was the goal. He got a job serving patrons at the new Jean Georges Steakhouse at the Aria Resort & Casino. “The man who hired me was from New York and my transfer from New York helped at the interview,” said a smiling Officer.

Officer knew some members of the arts community in Las Vegas, but he was a newcomer and it took time to finally make guest appearances as the job allowed. “I don’t have the advantage others have had in building an audience here, so my progress was slow.” Officer admits that his job at the steakhouse was a shock to some other performers. “I know some singers who wouldn’t be caught dead making drinks and delivering food, but I don’t have an enormous ego that way. At one point, I had knee surgery and during my recovery I worked a couple days a week at the Nevada Room and was happy to do so. When my knee was in shape I returned to the Aria.”

Officer retired from his full-time job this past January after 14 years. His singing opportunities have opened up and he’s a mighty happy man these days. His first appearance in New York from Las Vegas was a sell-out. Next week he will be in New York again, this time singing about Mabel Mercer.